1. Field
This invention relates to compound archery bows. More specifically, it pertains to the cable guard assemblies of such bows and provides an improved cable-retaining fixture for the cable guard rod of such an assembly.
2. State of the Art
The rigging of compound archery bows includes a pair of eccentric members interconnected by cabling, including a central stretch, (with a bowstring segment), and a pair of end stretches. A design constraint of compound bows is the necessity for providing adequate arrow clearance for the fletching of an arrow launched by the string. Otherwise, the end stretches block the normal travel path of the arrow. Structures called cable guards or cable guard rods are typically attached to the handle riser of the bow to maintain this clearance.
Characteristically, the rigging and its components, especially the end stretches, cause noise during and following the launch of an arrow. Various expedients have been suggested whereby mechanisms attached to a cable guard rod couple with the end stretches to decrease this cable noise. These fixtures also assist in maintaining arrow clearance.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,452,222, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference as a part of this disclosure, describes, at col. 1, lines 10 through 47, the problems encountered when a cable guard rod is positioned between the central stretch (string) and end stretches (cables) of the rigging of a compound bow to maintain arrow clearance. The patentees note the desirability of minimizing the lateral displacement of the cables from the string to minimize stress and wear on the cables, among other benefits. To avoid interference of the cable guard rod with the bowstring, the patentees suggested a cable-retaining member mounted rotatably and slidably on the rod with bore holes which slidably receive the cables. With this arrangement, the rod could be laterally displaced sufficiently from the string to avoid interference without the need for excessive lateral displacement of the cables. Although devices of this type serve their intended purpose well, the frictional resistance they impose upon the end stretches can cause erratic operation as well as intolerable wear on both the end stretch cables and the cable-retaining member.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,596,228, the disclosure of which is also incorporated by reference as a part of this disclosure, describes, at Col. 1, line 10 through Col. 2, line 22, the problems of cable noise generated by the end stretch cables resting upon a cable guard rod and various expedients relied upon to alleviate that noise. The patentee discloses an improved cable separator, (a form of cable-retaining member), which travels on the cable guard rod but which permits connection to the cables without the need for disassembly and reassembly of the bow. This device is also subject to the wear problems typical of prior art cable-retaining members.
Cable wear is reduced by a recent cable-retaining member for a cable guard assembly offered by Saunders Archery Company of Columbus, NE under the name "6.times.6.TM. Cable Guard Slide." This device is relatively complex mechanically. It includes six separate rollers, two of which engage the cable guard rod and four of which contact the cable end stretches.
There remains a need for a cable-retaining member for a cable guard assembly of simple construction which nevertheless offers the advantages of noise reduction and optimum clearance without attendant undue cable wear.